Dark Aeons Guide --------------------------- By Steaver370 --------------------------- I can't really be bothered writing out all the legal crap, so I'll just make this quick. You may not say that you wrote this guide. You may not use it for profit. You may not use it in a magazine, game book, or anything like that, without asking for permission first. I'll probably give you permission, but you must not try to make it look as if you wrote this guide. You may not modify this guide, unless it is for the purposes of printing out certain sections without printing the whole guide. If you would like to put this guide on your website, you may do so, as long as you notify me. You don't have to ask for permission, you just have to tell me that you're doing it. However, you must put it on your site EXACTLY how I have it written. No converting to HTML, no changing things - you may not even fix typos! If you want to contact me, either for suggesting information to be added, or to tell me you're putting this guide on your site, or something else, you can e-mail me at trio_of_9999@hotmail.com or contact me on MSN(my MSN is the same as my e-mail), or on Yahoo! or AOL as Steaver370. Okay, now that I have that out of the way, lets start killing the Dark Aeons. --------------------------- --------------------------- Updates --------------------------- First Version - Wrote the guide. All Dark Aeon strategies done. Penance theory included. Second Version - Minor updates. Put new E-Mail adress, added Dark Aeon HPs. Third Version - Added some information about if you miss the Destruction Spheres or don't have Celestial Weapons. Also fixed Dark Ixion's HP, which was off by 100,000. And corrected a minor formatting error in the updates section. --------------------------- --------------------------- Preperation --------------------------- You will obviously need to raise your stats. The only Dark Aeon I have beaten with extremely low stats is Dark Ixion, and I wouldn't exactly reccomend trying it either. I will divide the Dark Aeons into two groups - the weak ones, and the strong ones. Weak Dark Aeons: -Valefor -Ifrit -Ixion -Shiva Strong Dark Aeons: -Bahamut -Yojimbo -Anima -Magus Sisters First, you only need to get two characters to these really high stats. I used Tidus and Lulu, you might do things differently. For the strong Dark Aeons, you will need 200 Strength, 170 Agility and 60 Luck. Your other stats do not matter. For the weak Dark Aeons, you will still need about 200 Strength, but you should be fine with 25 Luck or so, and 140 Agility. The other characters that you use - I used Rikku and Yuna - must have at least 100 Agility, their other stats don't matter at all. Note that you must not use Yuna as a strong character, and you must use Rikku, preferably as a weak character, but as a strong character is okay. Note that although Dark Shiva is in the weak Dark Aeons group, you will need the same Agility you need for the strong Dark Aeons. For your two strong characters, you obviously will need to use Celestial Weapons. For the two other characters(and one of them must be Yuna), custom weapons are the way to go. You will need First Strike, and I would reccomend Initiative as well, to avoid ambushes and increase the chance of a pre-emptive strike. All four characters need good armour as well. Without a doubt, all of them must have Stoneproof, Sleepproof and Auto-Phoenix. If you use Ribbon instead of Stoneproof and Sleepproof, you can also add Auto-Potion, which would help against Dark Magus Sisters and Dark Anima, although I didn't use it. The fourth ability is variable. For your two powerful characters, you simply MUST use Auto-Haste. For your two weaker characters, you don't really need Auto-Haste, although it helps. I would reccomend just going with Slowproof. If you have Ribbon for them instead of using Stoneproof and Sleepproof, and don't want to get Auto-Haste, I would reccomend SOS Haste. So your armours will be: Strong Characters: -Sleepproof -Stoneproof -Auto-Phoenix -Auto-Haste OR -Ribbon -Auto-Phoenix -Auto-Haste -Auto-Potion Weak Characters: -Sleepproof -Stoneproof -Slowproof -Auto-Phoenix OR -Ribbon -Auto-Phoenix -Auto/SOS-Haste -Auto-Potion You will also need a couple of specific abilities. Entrust is vital in the Dark Magus Sisters battle, unless you are willing to raise your stats even higher. Quick Hit is pretty much essential in all the Dark Aeon battles, but especially against Dark Yojimbo, where you've basically lost if the enemy gets more than eight attacks per battle. Aim is also essential against the strong Dark Aeons, and against Dark Shiva. Blitz Ace is essential against Dark Magus Sisters, as is one of Rikku's mixes. Another one of Rikku's mixes is essential against Dark Bahamut. Finally, for items. Although you probably won't need that many, you should have 99 Phoenix Downs for each Dark Aeon battle. The only one where you are at risk of running out is Dark Magus Sisters, but it's good to be safe anyway. If you are using Auto-Potion, you should have at least 50 X-Potions for Dark Anima, and at least 20 for Dark Magus Sisters. Some Turbo Ethers are reccomended for MP recovery after using Quick Hit - the only other cause of MP loss is Dark Anima's Oblivion, if you need to block it more than eight times. You will also need 10 Ethers or Turbo Ethers for the Dark Magus Sisters battle, and 10 Designer Wallets. For Dark Bahamut, you will need 15 Light Curtains(Lunar or Star curtains work too, but Light Curtains are easiest to get) and 15 Gambler's Spirits(Doors To Tomorrow or Wings To Discovery work too, but Gambler's Spirits are easiest to get). I would also reccomend having at least 3 of each for Dark Anima, just in case. Although not essential, a few Megalixirs will help against Dark Anima and Dark Magus Sisters. Finally, you should always have some Mega Phoenixes, just in case Auto-Phoenix somehow fails and you need to revive two characters, or for if you run out of Phoenix Downs, and some Remedies or Eye Drops if you aren't using Ribbon with both strong characters. By the way, you will not need any Phoenix Downs against Dark Valefor or Dark Yojimbo, but you will against everything else. --------------------------- --------------------------- Order Of Fighting --------------------------- This is the order I fought the Dark Aeons in. Which actually turned out to pretty much be easiest to hardest, with two exceptions. Dark Ixion 1st Fight Dark Valefor Dark Ifrit Dark Ixion 2nd Fight <--- First exception. This is the easiest Dark Aeon fight. Dark Anima Dark Shiva Dark Magus Sisters Dark Yojimbo <--- Second exception. Dark Magus Sisters are harder. Dark Bahamut Note that Penance is indeed not on the list. First, because obviously he would be last. And second, because if there even is a way to beat him with these stats, I haven't found it and I do not plan to. Well okay, I can think of one way, but it doesn't really count - Zanmato. I will give a difficulty ranking to each Dark Aeon, in the order you should fight them. The order is from easiest to hardest, with one exception. You can't fight the 2nd Dark Ixion battle before the first, so the first Dark Ixion fight is listed first. Dark Ixion 1st Fight - 2/10 Dark Ixion 2nd Fight - 1/10 Dark Valefor - 3/10 Dark Ifrit - 4/10 Dark Anima - 4/10 Dark Shiva - 5/10 Dark Yojimbo - 6/10 Dark Magus Sisters - 8/10 Dark Bahamut - 10/10 Yes, that's right - the one with the most HP, Dark Anima, is only a 4/10, and is even ranked as easier than one of the weak Dark Aeons! Also, about your chances of success... Dark Ixion 1st Fight - Success is guaranteed. Dark Ixion 2nd Fight - Success is guaranteed, unless you don't block overdrive Dark Valefor - Success is guaranteed unless you muck up Dark Ifrit - Success is guaranteed, unless you don't block overdrive Dark Anima - Success is guaranteed unless you muck up, but it takes practice Dark Shiva - Success isn't guaranteed, but the chance is very high Dark Yojimbo - Success is guaranteed unless you muck up, or are inaccurate Dark Magus Sisters - Succeess isn't guaranteed, but the chance is good Dark Bahamut - Success is guaranteed unless you muck up, but it takes practice So if you do everything exactly right, the only ones you might lose are Dark Shiva and Dark Magus Sisters, both for different reasons. With Dark Shiva, she might not give you a chance to summon an Aeon to block her overdrive, while with Dark Magus Sisters, they might keep attacking the strong characters and not give them enough of a chance to attack back. --------------------------- --------------------------- Your Aeons --------------------------- You don't need to do much in the way of Aeons. Their stats don't matter at all. The only thing you need to do in the way of Aeons is get Anima, Yojimbo and Magus Sisters. Once you have done that, you do not need to do any more with Aeons to prepare. The only time Aeons are used in the Dark Aeon battles are: Dark Ixion 1st Fight - Not at all Dark Ixion 2nd Fight - To block overdrive(probably only once) Dark Valefor - To block every attack Dark Ifrit - To block overdrive(probably only once) Dark Anima - To block overdrive(probably all eight aeons will be used) Dark Shiva - To block overdrive(probably twice) Dark Yojimbo - To block every attack Dark Magus Sisters - To block Delta Attack overdrive(probably only once) Dark Bahamut - To block overdrive(use Hyper Mighty G for Impulse) --------------------------- --------------------------- Let's Get Started --------------------------- Alright. Got the weapons and armour? Got the stats? Got the items? Got the Aeons? Cool. Lets kick some Dark Aeon butt. --------------------------- --------------------------- Dark Ixion - 1,200,000 HP x 2 --------------------------- Head to the Thunder Plains. Go north. Save the game. Find a Yevon monk under a tower and talk to him. After the cutscene, the battle starts. With the stats required, and Auto-Phoenix, you cannot lose, unless you do delibarately. Just Quick Hit away. 14 Quick Hits and Dark Ixion goes down, assuming none of the hits miss. Save your game. Now, to catch Dark Ixion the second time, I would reccomend going to near the Macalania exit. Dark Ixion appears here twice during his pattern, and only once everywhere else. Run into him to start the 2nd battle. This battle is even easier. Quick Hit away. He shouldn't get to overdrive - if he does, summon an Aeon to block it. Don't use Hyper Mighty G, it isn't worth wasting items on. --------------------------- --------------------------- Dark Valefor - 800,000 HP --------------------------- Even if you are out of Phoenix Downs, don't bother restocking. Head to Besaid. Go towards the town, and Dark Valefor will attack. Now, this might be a bit of a problem. His attacks will all do 9999, except his overdrive, which will do about 50000. Auto-Phoenix will save you from claw swipe and Sonic Wings, but won't help you when he uses Energy Ray, which hits everyone. And he loves using Energy Ray. If your HP is at 9999, you could try getting some X-Potions and making a second armour with Break HP Limit and Auto-Potion, but why bother, when there's a simpler way? As with Dark Ixion, use Quick Hits. If Dark Valefor gets a turn, EVEN IF IT DOESN'T HAVE OVERDRIVE, switch someone(the weak character if possible) to Yuna, and summon an Aeon to take the attack. Try to cast Haste on Yuna as soon as possible if she doesn't have an Auto-Haste armour. Also, try switching weapons or characters to get Yuna's turn so that there is nothing between her turn and Dark Valefor's turn. By doing this, Dark Valefor will never get an attack on your party, and you cannot lose. If Anima has 255 Strength and at least 100 Luck, you could probably win simply by using Oblivion. Or if one of your strong characters is Wakka, and his strength is high enough, Attack Reels will win the battle. But if not, the block every attack and use Quick Hits method is the way to go. --------------------------- --------------------------- Dark Ifrit - 1,400,000 HP --------------------------- Restock on Phoenix Downs if you haven't already. Go to Bikanel. Return to where the Al Bhed Home was. To get past the guards, talk to the third Al Bhed person and say "Yes". Now, once again go past the guards. The battle begins. This battle is basically identical to the first Dark Ixion battle, except that it takes one Quick Hit more than that battle, and Dark Ifrit seems to get overdrive faster. It is almost guaranteed that you will need to block at least one overdrive. Use an Aeon, and not Hyper Mighty G, to do so. --------------------------- --------------------------- Dark Anima - 8,000,000 HP --------------------------- Restock on Phoenix Downs. Get 3 Light Curtains and 3 Gambler's Spirits(or equivalent items) just in case. Go to Mount Gagazet. Redo the trial with Wakka throwing a ball. Go back to the entrance. Save your game. Walk over to Dark Anima. Make sure Yuna is in the starting lineup if she doesn't have Auto-Haste. Use Haste on her right away, then switch her out. Use Quick Hits. Have your weak character use Aim whenever possible. If you don't have Auto-Potion, always recover your HP after Mega Graviton. If you don't have Ribbon, always use a Remedy or Eye Drop after Mega Graviton. Once Dark Anima hits overdrive, switch to Yuna and summon an Aeon to take it. However, although it is unlikely, it is possible that Yuna will be stuck in the front line and unable to summon. In this case, switch Rikku in(if she isn't already in) and mix Hyper Mighty G. This gives your characters Auto-Life, which will revive them right away after Oblivion kills them. The bad thing is, Dark Anima might get another attack before your characters do, and if that attack is Mega Graviton, you are dead, which is why it's best to summon for Oblivion, not use Hyper Mighty G. However, the chance of Yuna getting stuck at Dark Anima's overdrive and Anima using Mega Graviton right after Oblivion is extremely low(although I have seen it happen). What is more likely, but still probably won't happen, is that Dark Anima will get overdrive for the 9th time, which means all your Aeons will be used up, you survive it with Hyper Mighty G, and Dark Anima uses Mega Graviton. However, if all goes well, you should win somewhere between the 8th and 9th overdrive. If you seem to always be hit by the Oblivion then Mega Graviton, and you used Ribbon instead of Stoneproof and Sleepproof, and you haven't yet put Auto-Potion on, you could put SOS Shell in the last slot instead. Shell works against Mega Graviton, so if you use Hyper Mighty G for Oblivion and are revived, SOS Shell will activate, and if Dark Anima decides to use Mega Graviton next, SOS Shell will stop it from killing you. It takes a total of 81 Quick Hits, but since the last one only needs to do 80 damage, you could simply have one(or even more than one, and you might be able to reduce it to 79 Quick Hits) of your Aeons use an attack of some sort on Dark Anima. One last warning, don't summon until Dark Anima has full overdrive. If Dark Anima gets a turn without full overdrive against an Aeon, and uses Pain, the Aeon is dead. Dark Anima's Pain will bypass Aeon immunity, Death Ward, Deathproof and Zombie. --------------------------- --------------------------- Dark Shiva - 1,100,000 HP --------------------------- Restock on Phoenix Downs. Head back to Macalania Temple. For the battle, have the weak character use Aim, and the two strong ones use Quick Hits. It is very important to try and do as much damage as possible before Dark Shiva gets a turn, because once she gets a turn, her next turn comes much faster than it should - and I literally mean this, her attacks(and Heavenly Strike, I'm not sure about her overdrive) are like Quick Hits. If she nearly has full overdrive, don't attack her unless someone else gets a turn before hers. If she nearly has full overdrive, or has full overdrive, keep attacking until she has the next turn, then switch in Yuna, and summon the Magus Sisters. After they are killed by Diamond Dust(which, by the way, is the most powerful Dark Aeon overdrive, other than the ones that always do 99999), switch Yuna out as soon as possible and go back to Quick Hits. Although you might beat her before her next overdrive, it is quite possible she will get another one. Use any Aeon to block it, although unlike the first one, you will need to make sure that either she has full overdrive before you summon, or that when the Aeon attacks her she will get full overdrive. Otherwise, simply wait until she does, then switch someone to Yuna after her turn(which will probably give her full overdrive). Also, if you are unlucky, Yuna might get stuck, in which case you will have to mix Hyper Mighty G for the overdrive. --------------------------- --------------------------- Dark Yojimbo - 1,600,00 HP x 5 --------------------------- Don't bother restocking on Phoenix Downs, you don't need them for this battle. Head to where you got Yojimbo. Go to the last room before the Chamber Of The Fayth, then head back out. In the battle, use Aim a few times, then use Quick Hits. Note that like Dark Valefor, Dark Yojimbo has a hit-all attack that he can use any time, so you will need to block every attack with an Aeon. Basically, take Dark Yojimbo the same way you did for Dark Valefor, except you need to use Aim a few times. And also, save between battles, both to recover your aeons, and in case you lose. Even though you have to start again from battle 1 if you lose, you still get to keep the items and equipment you get from winning. --------------------------- --------------------------- Dark Magus Sisters --------------------------- Dark Cindy - 3,000,000 HP Dark Sandy - 2,500,000 HP Dark Mindy - 2,000,000 HP Restock on Phoenix Downs. You also need some other items for this battle, check the Preperation section. When the battle starts, don't worry about Aim, just use Quick Hits on Dark Cindy. Just before their turns, summon the Magus Sisters - any other Aeon will die before Delta Attack, unless you've powered it up a lot, and even then, probably only if Dark Mindy uses Camality and not Passado. Now, keep Quick Hitting until Cindy is dead. Use Remedy to recover from Camality or Mega Graviton, if you don't have Ribbon. If someone gets Cursed by Camality, hope that they'll be hit by an enemy attack soon. Overdrives are the key to beating Dark Mindy. First, Mix Miracle Drink(Turbo Ether and Designer Wallet), then use Blitz Ace and/or Attack Reels - for Blitz Ace, target Dark Mindy. Once Mindy is dead, use the same strategy for Sandy. Use Entrust to get overdrives when you need them. If a powerful character gets a turn but can't use overdrive, Quick Hit Sandy(don't Quick Hit Mindy, you are almost guaranteed to miss, even with five Aims). Make sure Miracle Drink is mixed before each Blitz Ace, don't worry about mixing it before Attack Reels though. Apart from the Delta Attack at the start, DO NOT summon to block overdrives. Unless all three have overdrive at the same time, all they will use is Mega Graviton. Just make sure your HP is at least half of your Max HP if one of them has overdrive. If two have overdrive, you need to be at Max HP. If all three somehow get overdrive again, try to get a turn just before Dark Cindy, and summon to block it. You cannot use Auto-Life to survive Delta Attack, don't bother trying. It might take a few attempts to get this battle right, if the enemies keep hitting the wrong person. I only took two attempts, you might take more(or less). --------------------------- --------------------------- Dark Bahamut - 4,000,000 HP --------------------------- Restock on Phoenix Downs. Get the items you need for this battle. This is the final Dark Aeon battle, and by far, the hardest. You WILL fail a few times unless you are very careful, you need to have some practise and get used to how this battle will go. Keep count of how many attacks you make on Dark Bahamut. It doesn't matter if they hit or miss, it doesn't matter if it's Quick Hit or Steal, it doesn't matter if it's Dark Matter or Curaga. Keep track. Do NOT count counterattacks though - well, you won't be getting any anyway. Use Aim a few times, then Quick Hits. After four Quick Hits, use Hyper Mighty G before the next Quick Hit. If the next Quick Hit would give Dark Bahamut full overdrive, do not use the Quick Hit, do not even use Hyper Mighty G. Just defend or use Aim until Dark Bahamut uses another attack. Now, summon an Aeon to block the overdrive. Do not use an attack! Have the Aeon use something on itself(such as Cheer or Curaga), or use Shield or Boost. Always summon an Aeon to take the overdrive, and never have Aeons attack. If Dark Bahamut has full overdrive, do not use Hyper Mighty G(unless you are unable to summon, and need Hyper Mighty G to survive the overdrive), and do not use a 5th Quick Hit - if you have not used four Quick Hits yet, you can use more until you have done four. Also, once you use the 5th Quick Hit and Dark Bahamut counters with Impulse, killing everyone, and Hyper Mighty G brings them back, start counting the Quick Hits again from zero - so, use four more, then Hyper Mighty G, then a fifth. You will need some practise to get it right. However, as long as you don't lose count, and do everything right, you have a guaranteed win, so at least you don't have to rely on being lucky for this battle. --------------------------- --------------------------- Penance - 12,000,000 HP --------------------------- You will now see a cutscene with Penance rising from a gorge in the Calm Lands. You can now fight Penance, but you can't beat it yet. What you can do, however, is get some cheap Dark Matter or Master Spheres. First, raise your Luck to 80 or so. Now, battle Penance. Quick Hit one of the arms as many times as you can. Summon an Aeon to block Penance's attack. Keep Quick Hitting the arm. When it dies, use Flee. You will get either a Dark Matter or a Master Sphere. Repeat until you have enough. If you are strong enough, you can try killing both arms, or even letting the arms regenerate and then kill them more. There is no limit to how many items you can get per battle. If you are strong enough to deal 3,000,000 damage without dying, it will be much easier to get the items. Cast Dispel on Penance to cancel its Haste, and keep killing the arms. However, don't let Penance get a turn with both arms alive. As long as there is only ever one arm alive on his turn, Penance will only use single-target attacks after losing 3,000,000 HP. The arms may still use hit-all attacks, but their hit all attacks are limited to Mega Graviton, which is not a problem with Auto-Potion, and Slowga, which is not a problem with Auto-Haste. If you don't have Auto-Potion, you will need to recover after each Mega Graviton. Note that if you somehow manage to get Penance this far(I don't know how it could be done with these stats though), you can probably kill it - make sure you only attack it if at least one arm is dead, and you will be okay. However, make sure you always stay at Max HP if the left arm gets a turn, because of Mega Graviton(the Right Arm cannot cast Mega Graviton), and if you are trying to kill Penance, make sure you use Dispel if the Right Arm uses Mighty Guard. Basically, if you can find a way to deal the first 3,000,000 damage without dying, the rest should only be about as hard as Dark Shiva. I might as well give a theory for the first 3,000,000. Don't worry about the arms. Just Quick Hit the body. Summon to block every attack(you will need to raise Yuna's agility to 170 or so, and Auto-Haste would help) that Penance gets. Do not summon for arm attacks. When you summon an Aeon, try to get an attack on the body as well - for Valefor, use Energy Blast, for Bahamut, use Mega Flare, for Anima, use Oblivion, for Yojimbo, use Wakizashi, for Magus Sisters, use Delta Attack, for the elemental Aeons, use their special move (Meteor Strike, Aerospark and Heavenly Strike). The damage from the non-elemental Aeon overdrives put together, maybe plus Wakizashi, should also destroy the arms, making it easier temporarily. Note that this is just a theory! I have not tested this method, and it is very likely that it won't work. But if there is a way to beat Penance with these stats, this is probably it. --------------------------- --------------------------- Missed Destruction Spheres --------------------------- I received an E-Mail from someone, asking about what to do if they cannot get Anima and the Magus Sisters because they missed the Destruction Spheres in Besaid and/or Maclania. ------- I've read your guide with great interest, but I have a huge problem. I didn't get the destruction spheres at Besaid or Macalania temples first time and so I'm unable to light all the statues at Baaj temple to get Anima whom I need to get the Magus Sisters.... ....I have to fight Dark Valefor to get back to Besaid and Dark Shiva to get back to Macalania. It's too late to reload a previous saved game because I've done so much else - Monster Quests etc. - and only Auron has his full Celectial Weapon, Tidus has half. Is there any way I can sneak into these temples without being spotted by the Dark Aeons? Or is there any way of defeating them without Anima or the Magus Sisters? If you can help, great! Thanks Valmcb ------- For Dark Shiva, there should be no problem. You only need one or two Aeons, and usually it does not matter which ones. If you get stuck in a case where you will have to use the Magus Sisters, you simply will need to try again. It doesn't happen that often. Dark Valefor may be a bit different. You are only able to block six attacks, instead of eight. Still, with the right stats, you should be able to do it in time. Use Aim a few times if you are finding that you miss a lot. As for the Celestial Weapon issue, you simply need to get the Celestials, sorry. If you want, you can use a custom weapon for some of the battles. For the Dark Magus Sisters, you can use Break Damage Limit and Triple Overdrive. You still have two empty slots after this, so throw on First Strike and Alchemy. For Dark Valefor, Dark Ifrit, Dark Ixion and Dark Shiva, simply Break Damage Limit, Strength+20%, and two abilities of your choice are enough. For Ixion, I'd reccomend using Evade & Counter as one. First Strike is good for the other slot. You really need Celestial Weapons for Dark Bahamut, Anima and Yojimbo. --------------------------- --------------------------- That's all --------------------------- Well, as I just said. That's all. Hope this guide helped. Contact me on MSN or E-Mail - I'm at trio_of_9999@hotmail.com. You can also get me on Yahoo or AIM as Steaver370, but I'm not on those as often as I am on MSN. --------------------------- --------------------------- Credits --------------------------- Thanks goes to Square for making this game, of course. Also, thanks to the author of the Bribe FAQ, who without, I couldn't have got the items I need Probably a few other random FAQ authors as well, can't remember any specific ones Thanks to Valmcb for reminding me of the issue of being unable to obtian Anima due to the Destruction Spheres And thanks to you, for reading this ---------------------------